Low-income countries are vulnerable to food insecurity and increasing sociopolitical tensions – magnifies conflict
Georgieva 3/31 [Kristalina Georgieva; PhD in Economics and is the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund and former CEO of the World Bank; 3-31-2023; "The Time Is Now: We Must Step Up Support For the Poorest Countries"; IMF; https://www.imf.org/en/Blogs/Articles/2023/03/31/the-time-is-now-we-must-step-up-support-for-the-poorest-countries; Accessed 7-15-2023; AW]
The challenges facing low-income countries have grown immensely in recent years. They have suffered from the pandemic as well as a succession of economic shocks. And today they face additional challenges from scarcer financing, high inflation, persistent food insecurity, rising debt vulnerabilities and sociopolitical tensions, especially in fragile and conflict-affected states. We have revised down our growth projections for low-income countries, whose per capita income growth is falling further behind the rates needed to catch up with advanced economies. This threatens to reverse a decades-long trend of steadily converging living standards. Without urgent action and more support, there is little chance of them making up the lost ground.